Common Misapprehension
by Aikou
Summary: "You would have liked me in 1864." When Damon requests from Bonnie to help recover a memory from his past, the spell accidentally erases all of Damon's memories that happened after 1864.  Elena & Co will never look at Damon the same way.  CH. 4 UP
1. The Jewelry Box

**Common Misapprehension**

by Aikou

"You would have liked me in 1864." In search of a gift for Elena, Damon urges Bonnie to use magic in effort to help him remember where he had hidden his mother's jewelry box in 1864. Instead, the spell erases all of Damon's memories after he hid the box. While Bonnie looks for a way to fix the problem, Elena & Co must re-adjust Damon to modern times, vampirism, and other discoveries about his present life, they come to terms with their own previous judgements of Damon. Set after S:3, E:9, Christmas time.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries.

* * *

><p><strong>I. The Jewelry Box<strong>

"Elena! My wonderful, beautiful, sweet Elena!" Damon exclaimed from his spot on the sofa in the Gilbert home living room.

Elena rolled her eyes, "You sound so sincere. What are you doing here?"

Damon instantly jumped up and walked towards her as she dropped her school bag near the stair well, "Waiting for you, of course. What makes you think I'm not being sincere?"

She shook her head, "You're Damon."

Damon raised a brow at her statement, "Dagger."

She bit her lip, "I don't know. Sorry, I just… I've been having a bad day. Exams were really tough this time around," she took off her coat and scarf, "Can't wait until winter break."

Damon feigned sadness, taking her coat and scarf, hanging them up on the coat rack.

"You know how hard it's been for me. Letting go of Stefan each day?"

He avoided eye contact with her at the sound of his missing brother's name, "I understand."

"And if we're going to be friends, and move on-"

"I get it," Damon interrupted her, then his lips shaped into his signature crooked smile, "You need to lighten up. Soon it'll be Christmas, where's your holiday spirit?"

They walked toward the kitchen, where Elena began to pour herself a bowl of afternoon cereal. She half-smiled, "I hope you're not thinking of getting me anything inappropriate."

"Inappropriate?" Damon pretended to be offended, "Like what?"

Elena's face was completely serious, "I know you're going to want to get me something so I won't stop you. Just don't get me lingerie or whatever, I don't care how hilarious you think it is."

"Why I never!" he grinned, "You need to get your head out of the gutter, Elena."

"Shut up, Damon!"

* * *

><p>"Come on, Witchy," Damon drawled, "Aren't we friends now?"<p>

"Hardly, Damon," Bonnie retorted, then continued walking down the sidewalk past the town park, "What makes you think I would do this for you?"

Damon attempted to stand in front of her, "Where's your holiday spirit? Or solstice, or whatever you want to call it. Aren't you the least bit interested in what I'm looking for?"

"Nope," Bonnie side-stepped and continued her quick pace.

"Or do you lack the ability since you lost the help of your witchy ancestors?"

Bonnie glared, "I'm very positive it'd be easy for me to perform the spell. I. Just. Don't. Want. To."

Damon grabbed her by the shoulders, stopping her dead on the street, and Bonnie gasped.

"Hey!" Damon exclaimed trying to calm her, "Look, I'm not trying to hurt you, so don't do your supernatural brain explosion… thing, please. This is really important to me."

Something in the way his voice softened, and his eyes softened struck Bonnie, "What is it?" she inquired.

"My mother's jewelry box."

Bonnie shifted her demeanor, "Why do you need that?"

"Come on, should there be a reason? It was my mother's, I hid it a long time ago to keep it from my father and Stefan, now I just happen to want to reclaim it. Unfortunately, when you hide something out of unthinking impulse and never think about it until 146 years later, it's very hard to recall the details of how you went about it. I'm lucky I even remembered I had hidden it in the first place."

Intrigued, Bonnie sighed, "Fine, it sounds harmless… I could use a little practice anyway. It's been dead around here what with Klaus disappeared and all."

* * *

><p><strong>1864<strong>

_Damon peeked through the crack of his late mother's bedroom door, and watched his father drag his fingers across the ivory dresser. Damon and Stefan Salvatore's mother had passed away when Stefan was born, an incident Damon had always resented. His mother's room was kept intact-his father as stubborn as his sons, could never let go._

_Damon observed as his father opened the ivory jewelry box on the dresser, and caressed the red velvet interior. His father exhaled loudly, slammed the box closed and exited the room through the door on the opposite side of the room. Damon's eyes darted around to make sure his entry would go unnoticed, then slowly creeped into the room. He swiftly scooped the ornate jewelry box into his arms. Just on his way out the door, he stopped at the portrait of a beautiful older woman, hanging on the wall. He gazed reluctantly, and whispered "I'm sorry mother, but I cannot leave this to Stefan and Father, you understand. This is for the woman I love."_

_As soon as Damon was out the back entrance of his home he rushed through the woods on foot. He could see the sun setting ahead through the trees, the sky ablaze with vibrant colors. He smiled, thinking to himself how perfect the moment would be. Finally, he stopped at a large cliff near a waterfall and placed the box down on the ground near the edge of the bank of running water. He heaved to catch his breathe, and then sat down with the jewelry box and opened the lid, gazing adoringly at the ivory and rose gold jewelry inside. His mother's necklace was a rose gold chain with an ivory cameo setting of a rose. Her wedding ring was rose gold as well, with a beautiful crimson garnet stone. There were other trinkets and earrings. "These would be lovely for Katherine," he whispered._

_"You're not thinking of proposing to me?" Katherine's melodic voice sung from behind him._

_Startled, Damon jumped up and turned to face her, "Katherine! I… Well, actually I thought that it would be-"_

_"I'm flattered," Katherine's enigmatic smile instantly charmed Damon._

_She was beautifully dressed in a decadent red corset and skirts. He quickly dashed to greet her with a kiss, so very passionate from his end. Katherine faked a cough and released herself from him, "Be serious, Damon. I would gladly accept your mother's jewelry box, but you should keep it for a more appropriate time."_

_Damon felt rather hurt, "But we're… running out of time Katherine. Soon they will call the hunt on your kind, and Katherine, I fear-"_

_"Shhh," Katherine placed a finger on his lips, and gazed into his eyes intently, mesmerizing him, "You are not to propose to me right now, Damon."_

_He blinked, "Of course not, Katherine. I wouldn't dream of compromising anything. I apologize. I merely wanted to give you my mother's necklace."_

_Katherine smiled, and toyed with an amber necklace with a yellow stone around her neck, "I already have the one I need."_

_Damon nodded a bit dejected, "I want you to be mine forever Katherine," he leaned in to kiss her again, but she placed her hand on his mouth, stopping him._

_"I must go, Damon."_

_"To see Stefan?" he questioned with dismay._

_She grinned, "Are you the jealous type?"_

_Damon's brow furrowed, and he turned to the sunset. As soon as he turned back around to utter good-bye, Katherine was gone._

* * *

><p><strong>December 2011<strong>

_"Damon? Hey, wake up."_

_"Here's the salt stuff you asked for, Bonnie."_

_"Thanks, Caroline."_

_"Did it work?"_

Damon's brilliant blue eyes shot open, and he found himself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling. "You're awake!" Bonnie exclaimed, "I was worried for a minute there."

He slowly sat up on the wooden floor of the living room, and gazed at the fireplace. Then his eyes locked with Bonnie's. "Well?" she asked, "Do you know where your mom's jewelry box is?"

He nodded slowly, then squeezed his sides with his hands, "Apologies, I feel rather queasy."

Caroline's eyes widened, "I don't do vomit."

"Ugh, you'll both be fine. Atleast it worked," Bonnie began picking up her seance candles, "I thought for a moment something was wrong. I knew I was getting rusty. Let's get this cleaned up and get going, Elena is waiting on us at the grille."

Caroline and Bonnie both stood up, leaving a disoriented Damon sitting on the floor. The girls busied themselves with cleaning, and finally a concerned Bonnie crouched next to Damon, "Hey, um, what's the matter?"

He turned to her hesitantly, "I am sorry, Miss, but should I know you?"

Both Caroline and Bonnie's eyes widened, and they glanced at each other in bewilderment.

* * *

><p>Caroline handed Damon the Mystic Falls newspaper, "See. The year is 2011. Okay?"<p>

He nodded, "I see," and began reading the paper.

She crossed her arms and shook her head, walking back to the distraught Bonnie on the living room floor, flipping through her grimoires. "I don't understand! This was supposed to be a very simple memory ritual, why does he think he is from 1864!"

"Well, atleast he's not _completely_ incompetent."

Bonnie gritted her teeth, "He was only supposed to remember the day he last saw his jewelry box, not forget everything after it!"

Damon cleared his throat. Both Caroline and Bonnie looked at Damon standing in the hallway, "I would like to thank your for your hospitality," he announced, "I'd like to… return home now."

They looked at each other again. Finally Caroline sighed, "Let's call Elena."


	2. Katherine's Dead

**Common Misapprehension**

by Aikou

"You would have liked me in 1864." In search of a gift for Elena, Damon urges Bonnie to use magic in effort to help him remember where he had hidden his mother's jewelry box in 1864. Instead, the spell erases all of Damon's memories after he hid the box. While Bonnie looks for a way to fix the problem, Elena & Co must re-adjust Damon to modern times, vampirism, and other discoveries about his present life, they come to terms with their own previous judgements of Damon. Set after S:3, E:9, Christmas time.

* * *

><p><strong>II. Katherine's Dead<strong>

"What do you _mean_ he's Damon from 1864? Did he time travel… or something?" Elena paced the hallway near the restrooms of the Mystic Grille.

_"No, no, no," _Bonnie's voice on the phone responded, _"He asked me to do a spell so he could remember something from his past, and now he can't remember anything after that memory we tried to reclaim. He's the same Damon… except only with the memories of his life from 1864 and before it."_

"Freaky," Elena could not think of any other response, "Okay, if what you're saying is true then it might be best I head over there to help him adjust to the culture shock he'll probably be having."

_"Good idea, I didn't even think about that."_

Elena hung up the phone and began to walk towards the exit of the Grille, however stopped on the sidewalk. She picked up her phone and called one of the previously saved unknown numbers in her phone. It rang three times, then went to voicemail. She inhaled deeply, and thought about the many times before when she had called this number and never received any response. Still, she hoped.

"Stefan… If this is still your number… and if you even care at all… This is Elena… Well, Bonnie did some ritual on Damon that erased every memory he had before 1864. Not sure how you feel about it, I guess, I'm not even really sure how serious this will be…" she stopped, deciding there was really no point in her leaving a message to the rogue number, then hung up the phone.

* * *

><p>Damon put the the white cellphone back down on the table, "Apologies, Miss Caroline, I cannot seem to get the device to talk to someone."<p>

Caroline walked to the dining room, "Haven't you ever used a telephone? Like one of those old ones?"

Damon shook his head, "I have not heard of such a thing…"

"Telephones weren't even invented until like 10 years later, Caroline," Bonnie's voice yelled from the other room.

"Oh," Caroline replied, "Well that's okay, we'll just figure that out later."

Damon got up and walked toward the hallway where a large mirror hung and caught sight of his reflection. He stared incredulously at the man with blue eyes and messy black hair, and the long sleeve sweater. He immediately strolled toward the living room to address Caroline and Bonnie, "Quickly! May I request use of a hairbrush and a washbowl?"

"A hairbrush and a what bowl?" Caroline squinted at him.

Bonnie sighed in exasperation, "He means a sink," she got up and put one of her grimoires down, "Come on, Damon, follow me."

* * *

><p>On the way to Bonnie's house, Elena's purse began vibrating loudly. She braked at the red light, and immediately rummaged through the contents of her bag, pulling out her phone. Her heart raced when her she looked at the screen and saw the same rogue number she had called earlier. She answered out of breath, "Stefan?"<p>

_"Well, hello Elena," _a sly feminine voice replied.

"Katherine."

_"The one and only."_

"What are you doing with Stefan?" Elena began to boil within.

_"Elena, dear, is that anyway to greet a friend?"_

"We aren't friends, Katherine."

_"You don't need to worry about Stefan, he's busy playing Harley Quinn to Klaus's Joker at the moment. I just happened to confiscate his phone the last time I saw him."_

"Why don't I believe you?" Elena put the car in gear, and continued to drive home.

_"Believe what you want, Elena. I listened to your voicemail. So, if Damon thinks he is from 1864, then he may very well be a liability to us now."_

"How so?"

_"The Damon I knew in 1864 was a little more foolish in the do-anything-for-love department…"_

"How is it any different from today?"

Katherine snickered for a moment, _"Look, you might as well be changing his diapers. He is in no condition to be out looking for Stefan and I, so I warn you now. You must at all costs, prevent him to come looking for us. Tell him that we are dead, tell him whatever you need to. Meanwhile, that little witch of yours better restore his memory. Unfortunately, the difference between the Damon of today and the Damon of yesterday happens to be the experience, the knowledge, and his tact for survival. Without any of those, he's as good as dead. Which, to be honest, is not very useful for any of us."_

Elena was silent.

_"I'll be in touch," _Katherine's melodic voice proceeded the beep of disconnection.

* * *

><p>Elena rang the doorbell, and swallowed the apprehension in her throat. What on earth should she say? She knew he would certainly ask her about Katherine and Stefan… The door swung open, "Elena!' Bonnie hugged her instantly, "Thank you for coming."<p>

"No problem," she took off her coat at the door and stepped forward.

She heard the sound of a toilet flushing, and a muffled male voice shout out, "Extraordinary!"

She raised an eyebrow at Bonnie, who looked a bit speechless, "Is this for real?"

Bonnie nodded, and Damon came out of the main floor bathroom, turning towards Elena. His jaw dropped, as did Elena's. He had combed and parted his hair to the side rather neatly. "Katherine," he uttered, and immediately rushed to her side, placed a hand on her cheek, his lips diving in to kiss Elena passionately.

Bonnie and Caroline continued to stand there stupefied. Startled, Elena pushed Damon off of her, "Wait, Damon! I'm not!" she looked up at his shocked eyes, "I'm not Katherine…!"

Damon's eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean, Katherine?"

"Damon… Katherine… is dead."

Bonnie stifled a gasp, and looked at Caroline.

"I do not understand, you are standing in front of me," Damon backed away from Elena, looking her up and down.

"Damon, please listen. I know this whole thing is a shock to you, but my name is Elena Gilbert. I am one of Katherine's descendants, so maybe that explains why we look so alike..."

"I thought for a moment, perhaps, you had survived the centuries… You are after all, immortal."

Elena glanced at Caroline, who nodded and ran toward the other room, then Elena stepped towards the dubious man, "No, Damon… You are."

Caroline came back into the room and held up a medical blood pouch in front of Damon's face. Veins pulsated around his eyes as the scleras turned crimson with hunger. Elena stepped backward, her hand shifted through her purse and pulled out a mirror compact to reflect Damon's image toward him. He gasped, and jumped backward at accelerated speed, "How can this be?" he asked shakily, his eyes returning to normal.

Elena walked towards Damon on the stairs, and hesitantly began to speak, "Since you still thought you were human, I'm going to assume you don't know that Katherine had you turned into a vampire to save your life."

Damon swallowed the dread in his throat, "She did…?"

"But she died, Damon. She burned in the church with all the other vampires of Mystic Falls, when your father called the hunt in 1864."

"My father…?" his eyes began to well with tears, and he turned away from them to hide it, "What about my brother, Stefan? Did you know him?"

Elena paused, and glanced at Caroline and Bonnie, who were completely confused but decided it was best not to interrupt. She continued slowly, "You told me that… your brother had died trying to save her."

"I see," he wiped his eyes, and stared at the wooden banister.

"Damon, you have been living here for a while in Mystic Falls," Bonnie picked up where Elena left off, "You wanted me to help you remember where you had hidden something of your mother's."

"Her jewelry box," he answered.

"Yes, and the ritual seems to have gone wrong. I'm going to find a way to get your memories back. In the meantime, I know this is all a shock to you, but please trust us."

He nodded glumly, then sharply looked back at Elena. "So you are a human then?"

"Yes," Elena replied.

He stood up, staring at her expressionlessly. Elena could not conceive at all what he was thinking, and shifted uncomfortably. He softly swept up her hand and brought it to his lips, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Elena Gilbert. I apologize for my advances earlier, you are unmistakably identical to Katherine. As you may know we were very… close…" he paused, "Otherwise, I appreciate the revelations you have brought me."

She nodded, tentatively sliding her hand from his grasp, "It's alright, I figured this might happen... I am sorry if it causes you pain."

"I'll get over it," he hastily turned away, "As Miss Caroline and Miss Bonnie explained to me earlier, it's been 146 years. The only reason these facts prevail grief upon me is because they seem to have happened only yesterday, due to the oversights of the ritual I requested from Miss Bonnie. Now, if you'll let me have a moment," he walked off.

* * *

><p>"Okay, Elena, <em>now<em> can you tell me what the hell is going on?" Bonnie asked fiercely.

Elena glanced around the Mystic Grille, and sat down at one of the tables, "Where is Damon?"

"He's with Caroline," Bonnie sat down across from her, "She has to re-teach him how to behave as a vampire."

Elena drummed her fingers on the table, "Well that'll be interesting."

"Elena, why did you lie to Damon?"

She exhaled slowly, "I tried to call Stefan earlier. But I ended up talking to Katherine instead."

"Really?" Bonnie raised a brow, "What did she have to say?"

Elena continued, "Katherine told me that I needed to make sure Damon didn't try to go looking for them. So I lied to him to prevent that. And… I think she's right. If he doesn't even know how to act as a vampire, or know anything that's going on, I just think that it'd be a lot of work trying to keep him alive and chase him around if he thinks he's got something to chase."

Bonnie shrugged, "Well… sounds reasonable. If he did know, it'd probably be very difficult to convince him not to go looking for Klaus-cronie-Ripper Stefan or diabolical Katherine."

Elena flinched at Bonnie's statement. Matt stopped by the table and put two glasses down, pouring water, "Hey guys, how's your evening?"

Elena smiled, "Hey Matt, it's been fine."

He nodded to Bonnie, and set down the menus, "Let me know when you're ready."

As he walked away, Elena put her head in her hands, "Bonnie… Do you think we can trust this Damon?"

"I don't know, Elena. I don't know anything about what he was like in 1864. To be honest, we're all still on careful guard around him. There's a possibility he could be worse."

"Hmm," Elena emitted thoughtfully.

Bonnie took a sip from her water, and surveyed her best friend, "What is it?"

Elena's hands slid to the back of her neck as she lifted her elbows to rest on the table and leaned forward, "When Damon was… on his deathbed. He said something to me."

"What did he say?"

"He said that I should have met him in 1864."

"Why?"

"He said that I would have liked him."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong> I have been working hard to research the Damon of 1864 in flashback episodes, and there's a back and forth when writing to keep him in-character, as some flashbacks he is rather forward, and others, respectful and timid. Please review and let me know what you think :) I gladly accept criticism as well. Next chapter should be very fun ;)


	3. My Apologies

**Common Misapprehension**

by Aikou

"You would have liked me in 1864." In search of a gift for Elena, Damon urges Bonnie to use magic in effort to help him remember where he had hidden his mother's jewelry box in 1864. Instead, the spell erases all of Damon's memories after he hid the box. While Bonnie looks for a way to fix the problem, Elena & Co must re-adjust Damon to modern times, vampirism, and other discoveries about his present life, they come to terms with their own previous judgements of Damon. Set after S:3, E:9, Christmas time.

* * *

><p><strong>III. My Apologies<strong>

The forest was dark at night, barely illuminated by the stars, however the darkness did not inhibit the path for the two vampires who possessed exceptional night vision. They continued to trudge past the barren winter trees. "Miss Caroline, c-could you please explain to me… what the purpose of this is again?" Damon stammered as Caroline dragged him through the woods by his arm.

"Look, we can't have you losing control, _as usual_, and going off massacring people in town just because you don't understand how to manage your appetite!"

"I do not want to do that! The thought of killing people makes me feel acutely nauseous… or guilty… or both!" he cried.

Caroline stopped and turned to face him with raised eyebrows, her grip still tight around his arm, "Really? Hm… Somehow, I don't believe you."

Damon shrugged and looked up at her hopelessly, "I do not understand why you all seem to be under the impression that I am this despicable monster… I swear to you, I am nothing of the sort! I deserted the Confederate army because I couldn't handle all the blood and violence..."

The blonde vampire released Damon to the ground, who crumbled with his pathetic admission. She sighed in exasperation while he regained his composure, "Damon, we just can't take any chances with you."

"Is there a way I can prove the honor of my word?"

"_Your word!_," Caroline scoffed, "You're Damon Salvatore, for Christ's sake! Besides that you've manipulated and used me as your own personal errand-running-juice-box…! I mean, I think I can trust you one minute, and the next you're trying to rip my boyfriend's heart out of his chest to satisfy one of your ridiculous ego-trips!"

Damon slumped his shoulders and sat on the ground, contemplating her words deeply. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence for Caroline, and then Damon rose slightly so that he could kneel in front of Caroline, taking her hand in his. She stared at him with disbelief, "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Miss Caroline," his blue eyes gracefully captured hers, "I am profoundly ashamed of the behavior I have displayed towards you and your loved ones. I wish you to know it grieves me to think you have this image of me. Please, tell me what I can do to make amends?"

She yanked her hand away, "Ew."

He continued to look at her hopefully. She sighed closing her eyes for a moment, "Well… okay… Apology accepted… I guess."

Caroline was battling with herself, however something about Damon's unusual, yet, sincere warm smile won her over. "You can start by making sure you listen to what I say," she added.

Damon nodded in earnest, awaiting her instructions. She continued, "Now, go find a rabbit and kill it."

His expression went bilious, "A rabbit?" he choked out.

"Or a deer, or a squirrel. Whatever you come across first."

"Why would you want me to kill innocent forest animals? I've never liked hunting!"

Caroline rolled her eyes and grasped his arm, pulling him to stand up, "Better innocent forest creatures than innocent people."

She walked around behind him and lifted her leg to shove his back with her foot, "Now, get going!"

* * *

><p>Bonnie and Elena took turns dipping french fries into the ketchup and consuming them. "Stefan said that when you become a vampire, all your personality and emotions become heightened," Elena said in-between chewing.<p>

Her witch best friend took a sip from her water, "I think it's too early to judge his character, Elena. 146 years of being obsessed with someone who never loved you is a long enough time to change someone for the worse."

"Wow," Elena smirked, "Is this the usual Damon-cynical Bonnie Bennett I'm talking to? Are you actually giving him the benefit of the doubt?"

Bonnie shrugged, "Look, the spell I did messed him up, so I feel guilty about my mistake. But the important thing is I didn't get a bad feeling about him after he reverted to the Civil War Era. Originally, no, Caroline, Ric and I didn't think you should be around Damon. Especially not alone."

"What's that supposed to mean, Bonnie?" Elena raised an eyebrow, "Is this another one of those we-suspect-Elena-has-unwarranted-feelings-for-Damon crusades?"

Bonnie gave her a serious look, "Elena, we were just trying to protect you."

Elena rolled her eyes, "I'm safer with Damon than I am with Stefan at this point."

Bonnie was silent, feeling as if she shouldn't further the subject matter. Luckily, Caroline burst into the grill, and immediately made her way toward them, "Ew, ew, ew, ew!" she exclaimed flicking her hands as if they were covered in slimy residue.

Bonnie slid out of her side of the booth and stood up, "Caroline, what is it?" she asked concerned.

"Nothing," she swayed toward them, "He just… he apologized to me."

"Apologized?" Elena questioned, "What did he do this time?"

Elena and Bonnie listened patiently as Caroline shook her head, "I was ranting about how shitty of a person he was and then he dropped to his knees and begged for forgiveness," she paused and gave them a stern look, "It was gross."

Elena started laughing, "Really? Is that all? Why is that gross?"

The blonde vampire frowned, "Because… he sounded sincere."

Elena stopped, and furrowed her brow, "Wow. That must have been strange for you. I can't say Damon hasn't tried to apologize to me before, but it was never over the top like that."

A polite male voice interrupted their circle, "I am sorry… but I couldn't help but hear everything you said… even though I was across the room."

They turned to see a very confused, ruffled side-parted hair Damon standing behind them. Elena slid further into her booth and patted the seat, "It's okay Damon, that's normal. Sit down."

Caroline and Bonnie followed suit and sat across from Elena and Damon. "Is it?" Damon queried.

"As a vampire you also can hear almost anything that you focus on, across a greater distance… Sorry, I should have mentioned that," Caroline laughed nervously, "No wonder you weren't successful at hunting."

Damon nodded, "It's quite alright, I can't say I really tried… I think for now I will prefer the … um, blood package."

"You were probably too busy telling Damon what a terrible person he is," Elena reprimanded Caroline.

Damon nodded again, "Yes," he said assertively, "Miss Caroline was very kind to enlighten me of all my transgressions against you, Miss Elena, and you as well Miss Bonnie… and Tyler Lockwood… Miss Vicki, Miss Elena's brother Jeremy," he continued his list of names.

Caroline smiled triumphantly, "I think I like him better this way."

Elena frowned and put her hand on Damon's shoulder, "Damon… it's okay, really. We know you don't know any of this, so just forget it for now."

"But I can't!" he exclaimed, frustrated, "I cannot be more sorry for the things I have allegedly done to you Miss Elena… and to you Miss Bonnie. You have shown such kindness toward me, even though I have acted as such-"

"A jackass?" Bonnie interjected.

"Yes."

"Guys, lighten up!" Elena started to get frustrated at what she felt was injustice, "We forgive you, okay? Please let it go?"

Damon looked nervously at Bonnie, who sighed and gave in, "Apology accepted, Damon."

Again, his face lit up with a warm smile unlike anything Bonnie had encountered in the malevolent vampire, "Thank you," he said.

She forced a smile in return and instantly diverted her eyes elsewhere, uncertain of what to make of the situation.

* * *

><p>"You sure, Elena?" Bonnie asked, glancing at Damon.<p>

Damon was far too interested staring at the bright neon signs decorating the nightlife of Mystic Falls, "The town sure looks like a much more evolved place!" he remarked to himself.

Caroline waved to Bonnie, "I'm getting in the car Bonnie!"

"Bonnie, I'm fine. It's better that he stays on my couch overnight, just in case. I don't know what he might find in the boarding house," Elena responded, hugging Bonnie good night.

"Night, Elena. Call me if you need anything," Bonnie added as she headed off with Caroline.

Elena and Damon were left alone. Damon fidgeted nervously for the moment, "Have you no chaperone?"

She raised a brow, "What? Why would I need that?"

"Well I … We are alone together at night now, would that not be inappropriate? I understand you are a lady of the community and I would like to respect that," he stated.

"Damon, these are very different times. Things are more laid back now. Besides, we're just friends," she motioned for him to follow her.

"So you are saying that if I were to make my intentions known, then we would require a chaperone?" he furthered.

Elena stopped, looking at him almost sorrowfully, "Damon… I'm not Katherine. Don't pretend I am."

"I was only asking theoretically," he sounded a little despondent.

There was silence, and Elena continued to walk towards her car in the parking lot. He dashed at vampire speed so that he was standing in front of her. She gasped, startled at his sudden movement, "Damon! Don't do that, you scared me!"

"Forgive me! I forgot of my vampire abilities, please don't be frightened!"

"It's fine, Damon. And you don't have to apologize all the time."

"I am sorry."

Elena laughed, "And now you're apologizing for apologizing!"

He smiled warmly, enjoying her laughter, "Miss Elena."

"Elena."

"I know you are not Katherine," he reached out to comb the hair out of her face, "I have never met two more different people."

Elena bit her lip, perturbed by her emotions as he smiled at her. The coolness of Damon Salvatore was certainly missing. Was this the humanity hidden under the layers of sarcasm and rage in the vampire she knew? She shook her head, convincing herself that it could possibly be a very clever ruse. He was after all, the basis of personality for the sometimes sociopathic Damon.

She sighed as she got to her car, and looked up at him to realize he was gazing at her. He must have been wondering what she was thinking. "The truth is Damon… for as long as I've known you, I've only started to realize you are not entirely as you have appeared."

He looked at her questioningly. Elena suddenly felt she finally wanted to confide in this warm version of Damon. Pour her heart about everything she could never tell him before, because she was so busy keeping her guard around him. But her heart sank as she realized all the things she wanted to tell him about his current life, she couldn't. She had to keep to the lie she told about Stefan and Katherine. Feeling defeated she shook her head and unlocked the car, "Let's go."

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong> Thank you for reading :) I was wondering your thoughts on the character's reactions. I pictured them to be pretty wary of the situation, considering Damon's collective actions in the last episodes. Poor guy! Be so kind as to review !


	4. Modern Times

**Common Misapprehension**

by Aikou

"You would have liked me in 1864." In search of a gift for Elena, Damon urges Bonnie to use magic in effort to help him remember where he had hidden his mother's jewelry box in 1864. Instead, the spell erases all of Damon's memories after he hid the box. While Bonnie looks for a way to fix the problem, Elena & Co must re-adjust Damon to modern times, vampirism, and other discoveries about his present life, they come to terms with their own previous judgements of Damon. Set after S:3, E:9, Christmas time.

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><p><strong>IV. Modern Times<strong>

"Here!" Elena huffed as she released the pile of history books on the desk next to the computer in Jeremy's room, "These should also help as well."

Damon nodded, "Thank you, Miss Elena."

"How many times do I have to tell you? Just call me Elena," she replied softly with a small smile.

She had to admit, she found him strangely adorable how he called her 'Miss Elena'. Immediately, she inwardly shook off the feeling,_ 'This is Damon we're talking about here!'_

He tentatively began sorting through the short pile of books, reviewing their titles, "World Wars?" his eyes widened.

Elena acknowledged his astonishment with a shrug, "Pretty epic, huh?"

"Your brother will not be upset that I am using his electric-powered information processor?"

She giggled at his question, "You can call it a computer. So whenever there's a specific subject you want to know more about in the books, go ahead and use this search website called 'Google,'" she demonstrated to him by moving the mouse and typing on the keyboard, "And no, he won't mind. He's out working on a research project with Alaric."

"This is quite possibly the most incredible technology I've encountered," he remarked thoughtfully and then looked up at Elena and asked, "Alaric? Is he your father?"

Elena dropped her eyelids and frowned, "No… Although he is the closest to any sort of parental figure we have left."

Damon instantly detected the weakness in her voice and caught on, "My apologies, I did not realize-"

"Why would you have?" she interrupted him with a half-smile, "I'm totally fine, it's been over a year now since they passed."

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><p>Standing in the bathroom in between Jeremy and Elena's bedrooms, Damon softly knocked on Elena's door. He closed his eyes, focusing on the sound of her quiet shuffling. He felt heat crawl up his chest and sear his face, realizing he was picturing her getting out of bed. He inwardly panicked as Elena opened the door, "Good evening, I did not realize you had gone to sleep already," he admitted sheepishly, <em>'Or rather, I was hoping,' <em>he added thoughtfully.

"Don't worry about it," she replied and swung her door open wider, revealing that she was wearing vibrant red flannel pajama shorts, and a red thermal sweater.

The buttons on her shirt were loose, providing a low cut view of her chest. She yawned as Damon's eyes dropped to her torso and hip bone that was unintentionally revealed through the gap between the sweater and the shorts. He raised a brow and felt his palms grow sweaty at the sight of her long smooth legs. He gulped and turned around, "I will wait until you are decent!"

Elena blinked and then looked down at herself, and then laughed, "They're just pajamas," she straightened out her sweater, "Besides," she grabbed his shoulders and swung him around to face her, "We're just friends, and I trust that you're not intending on doing anything."

Damon nervously glanced around the room, determined to look anywhere except at Elena, "Please, Miss Elena."

"Damon, come on, it's okay-"

"No," he cut her off sternly, lowering his face, his eyes gazing at her in the most austere manner, reminding her of the modern vampire Damon.

Noting the fear in her expression, he exhaled with remorse, and placed both his hands on her cheeks to soothe her. He continued with a softened tone of voice, "Elena, I must confess that your beautiful form distresses me. With Katherine it would have been normal to see her dressed with so little. But as you made known to me earlier - you are not Katherine. And I do not wish to view, nor treat you as so. So I ask, in honor of our friendship, that in spite of your century's preference of clothing, would you accommodate my request?"

Elena nodded and Damon smiled and turned back around. As she walked back to her dresser drawers, she noted the intense electric current that had washed over her body during his confrontation.

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><p>"So I guess you probably have questions about some cool things you learned?" Elena winked at Damon while turning on the kitchen faucet to pour water in the tea pot.<p>

"Cool?" Damon asked, confused about her use of vernacular.

"Yeah, not as in cold. Today the term is used for something being interesting, or trendy."

"Ah," he grinned, "Cool."

She walked over to the stove and turned on the pilot. Damon jumped, "That was amazing! You just turn the knob and instant fire?"

"You bet!" she placed the tea pot down, "A lot of things are more efficient and quick these days. You don't even have to wash your clothes in a washtub and hang them out to dry. We have machines that do all that for us."

"Cool," he replied once more in awe.

Elena laughed, "There are other words you can use, such as awesome or epic. Those are often used to describe events that may be going in your favor."

"Well, Miss Elena, I must admit I do have a question."

"Hm?" she sat down across from him at the table.

"I checked the date on the computer… and did a few of your 'Google' searches. Why is it you do not have a Christmas tree in your living room? It seems to be a modern occurrence for the holiday."

She frowned, "Well I… it's really just Jeremy and I now. I guess the past year has been too rough with us. I hadn't even thought about decorating the house, much less having the heart to do it."

Damon frowned as well, "That is quite unfortunate. I hear your trees are decorated with electric light bulbs instead of candles. And that they often glow with vivid colors of the rainbow."

She tilted her head surveying the 19th century version of her vampire friend, "Out of all the things you could have researched on the internet, you looked up Christmas trees?"

"Absolutely," he replied as the tea pot began to whistle.

She laughed again, "Damon, you are really not at all what I expected," she got up to turn off the stove pilot.

He shrugged, "I'll take that as a compliment," he thought for a moment about the overviews of his character Caroline had given him earlier that night.

Elena pulled out two plain coffee mugs and poured the hot water. "To be honest," Damon continued, "I had a lot of options in terms of what I could research… but when I saw the date, I remembered the last Christmas I spent with Stefan and father," Damon added, "Today it only seemed relevant I would want to know about yours."

Elena proceeded to empty two packets of hot cocoa into the mugs, and began stirring, "Christmas at the Gilbert home… well, back before we were a broken family… It was a lot of fun. I have a lot of wonderful memories, but you know they're over now."

She grabbed a few marshmallows from a bag on the counter, and letting them plop from her hand into the chocolate mixture, she stirred with a spoon in the other. "I hope you are not concluding that you cannot have more," Damon responded, rather concerned for her emotional state.

She smiled, evading him, "You will like this, have you ever had hot chocolate?"

He shook his head, letting it go, "I am afraid not. But I am delighted to try…" he frowned slightly, "Will it not taste the same?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, bringing him a cup.

"I am a vampire now, as I understand we are meant to only crave blood."

Elena shrugged and sat down next to him with her cup, "Well…" her lips curved into a wide smile as she began to recall a memory, "One time, you, well, when you were 'bad' Damon," she laughed a bit, finding it comical that she had to explain their past in this way, "You kidnapped me-"

He raised a brow, "I certainly hope I did no such thing."

She took a sip of her hot cocoa and relished the sweet taste for a moment, "Looking back now, it was somewhat harmless. But you took me to this bar in Georgia to meet a woman you had an affair with a couple years back-"

Damon groaned, unhappy with this story of himself. She gazed at him for a moment then continued, "Well you were eating french fries and cheeseburgers with me - normal people food. You said that as long as you maintained your blood diet, you pretty much have normal body functions."

With that, Damon grinned excitedly and took a gulp of his hot chocolate.

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><p>Damon lie awake on the couch that morning and looked around the living room. He smiled at the conversations he had with Elena last night. He was determined to do something nice for her. Perhaps he could make it all up to her and she would see he wasn't so terrible of a person after all. He immediately squeezed his eyes shut and frowned, smacking his forehead with his hand, "I cannot believe I kidnapped her."<p>

He began to remember other incidents that Caroline had disclosed to him, "And tried to kill her younger brother..."

When he finished his moment of self-loathing, he shook it off and quickly got up. Instantly the weakness in his body encompassed him, and he held on to the coffee table for support. He was famished. He looked up at the refrigerator and sped to the kitchen to open the fridge door. He sighed in relief, remembering that Elena had stored a few packages for him that night - he didn't want to risk anything today. He popped off the lid on one of the crimson packages and began sucking the cold blood down. He absentmindedly kicked the fridge door closed, letting his eyes roll back as the delicious blood nourished his body. He threw the package in the trash can, and stretched. He was ready to execute his well calculated plans for the day.

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Please Review and let me know what you thought! What on earth do you think Damon could be up to? ;) Also, help me decide what winter activity you would enjoy reading about most for Elena & Damon… :) Hehe. Hope everyone's had a great Holiday!


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